Fitzpatrick wins French Open by three in Paris
Matt Fitzpatrick held his nerve in Paris to win the French Open by three shots.
The Englishman closed with a one-under-par 70 at Le Golf National on 27 September to finish at 20-under-par, three clear of Spain's Angel Hidalgo on 17-under, according to BBC Sport. It is his fourth title of the season and the 11th European Tour title of his career.
Fitzpatrick started the final round five shots ahead. That cushion matters. A five-shot lead sounds safe, but one bad swing near water can cut it fast, and a quiet 70 was enough to get the job done.
He built that lead a day earlier with a six-under-par 65 on Saturday, as reported by ABC News. The foundation came even earlier. Fitzpatrick, ranked world No. 4 that week, shot a bogey-free 64 in the second round, meaning a round with no dropped shots, to reach 13-under heading into the weekend at the course outside Paris, according to Golf Channel.
Hidalgo kept pressure on to take second alone. Behind him, home hope Matthieu Pavon produced the round of the day, a seven-under-par 64, to climb into a four-way tie for third at 15-under with Tom Vaillant, Kristoffer Reitan and Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra.
The win continues a strong year for Fitzpatrick across both main tours. He had already won the Valspar Championship and the RBC Heritage on the PGA Tour this season, plus the Zurich Classic team event in New Orleans alongside his brother Alex.
What makes this stand out is the steadiness of it. Four rounds in the 60s and low 70s, no panic when the lead shrank, and another trophy from France to carry into the winter.
